Massive dirty bomb & poisoning of citizens. Update: Doc to be shown on HBO (1 Viewer)

[St. Louis Bob]

Pretty sure I started a thread about this years ago but couldn't find it. At that time we were told there was nothing to worry about. Right.

 

As anxiety grows in neighborhoods near the Bridgeton Landfill, newly released emergency plans may be of little comfort.

Some say concern among residents and area officials has heightened since Missouri Attorney General Chris Koster released reports last month that said an underground fire at the landfill was moving toward radioactive waste in the adjacent West Lake Landfill.

Koster’s office also said some radioactive contamination was outside West Lake, a Superfund site overseen by the Environmental Protection Agency. The reports contradict landfill owner Republic Services’ assurances that the fire is under control and come as Koster’s office presses a lawsuit against Republic over the landfill.

“Since the release of that information, I’ve fielded a lot more questions, at least on a more consistent basis than we had before,” said Pattonville Fire Protection District Assistant Fire Chief Matt LaVanchy, whose department would have jurisdiction over an emergency at the landfill.

During a Sunday community event in St. Ann, residents distributed fliers on what to do during a radiation emergency.

Rhonda Marsala, who heads the St. Ann Business Association, said she reached out to St. Louis County’s Office of Emergency Management. Representatives there offered to attend and provide the radiation safety brochures, which use information from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.

“It kind of let us know there was a sense of urgency on St. Louis County’s part,” Marsala said.

More people have been asking about the landfills, she agreed.

“I think the real kicker that got people interested was when Koster’s report came out,” Marsala said. “There’s definitely a sense of urgency felt by the community.”

St. Louis County Executive Steve Stenger, in a phone interview, said the county provided the fliers at the request of the public, and it’s not indicative of an existing emergency. An emergency response plan, first drafted in October 2014, was also released in response to recent media requests and to illustrate the county has put time into planning for an incident in Bridgeton, he added.

“We are quite literally ready to respond to any scenarios as they may present themselves,” Stenger said.

First reported by KMOX (1120 AM), the county’s emergency plan says if the fire reaches contaminated areas of West Lake, “there is a potential for radioactive fallout to be released in the smoke plume and spread throughout the region.”

The cities of Bridgeton, Hazelwood, Maryland Heights, Champ and St. Charles would be “directly affected,” the plan says. It details an evacuation plan, communication and other responses.

The EPA has said it doesn’t believe the radioactive waste would be spread via air, although there would be an increase in radon gas.

LaVanchy, the assistant Pattonville chief, said he has taught firefighter training and worked closely with St. Louis County to develop the plan. Still, he said, it’s more of a guideline for first responders.

“That situation at the landfill is so dynamic, you can’t prepare for every single possibility that’s out there,” he said. “That document, for all intents and purposes, is to give first responders a heads up, a leg up.”

Republic Services has insisted the fire is under control and is not moving toward West Lake. LaVanchy said he agreed that the fire appears to have “stalled.”

But, he said, there was nothing to indicate the fire couldn’t begin moving again.

Meanwhile, Koster’s expert reports released last month have spurred Republic Services to move the case from St. Louis County Circuit Court to federal court.

In court filings last week, the Phoenix-based waste management company says Koster’s expert reports show it “intends to assert control” over radioactive waste that EPA has “exclusive jurisdiction” over.

Koster, in a statement, called the move “a delaying tactic.” He said his office opposes the move and push to keep a March trial date in St. Louis County Circuit Court.

Editor's note: Republic Services has already moved the case to federal court. A prior version indicated Republic petitioned to move the case from St. Louis County Circuit Court.

Local, State & Federal government, as well as the owner of the landfill, keep fighting about whose responsibility it is to at least try to fix this. Of course you've probably never heard about it. I would love to know the reason why. This is right by the Missouri river too so if you rely on it for anything, like water, you're ####ed too along with the hundreds of thousands of people that live in the cities mentioned in the article.

Bridgeton-Population 11,500

Hazelwood-Population 25,500

Maryland Heights-Population 27,500

St. Charles Population 374,000

Of course if you live around here you know that every one of these cities borders one or more densely populated city. I guess a rumor needs to be spread that somebody brown skin from the ME put this nuclear material there before the media or Feds care.

 

[fdas2]

I opened this assuming we were talking about massive poops.

ETA: Baseball is stupid

 

[msommer]

Well, I guess you guys ought to recycle more.

Oh and stop with the landfills.

Maybe find better (safer) things to do with nuclear waste, too

Stupid is as stupid does

 

[Godsbrother]

St. Louis seems to be a mess right now.

 

[lod01]

St. Louis seems to be a mess right now.

.....Like the whole area is a landfill.

 

[UOFI_316]

Bob, you are just the super hero we need at a time like this. All those days when you were a kid swimming in the radioactive streams behind your house have made you invincible. Have them lower you down into a hole with a fire extinguisher and put that thing out.

 

[El Floppo]

potentially scary ####, bob.

do you believe that the fire is "controlled"? what are your options if not... this place looks upwind (West) of St L- true? any idea how they combat fires like this?

oh... "dirty bomb"?

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Well, I guess you guys ought to recycle more.

Oh and stop with the landfills.

Maybe find better (safer) things to do with nuclear waste, too

Stupid is as stupid does

So I should get a time machine? Great idea. Of course there is that Back to the Future paradox where I have to avoid my parents and grandparents or else I won't be born.

 

[St. Louis Bob]

potentially scary ####, bob.

do you believe that the fire is "controlled"? what are your options if not... this place looks upwind (West) of St L- true? any idea how they combat fires like this?

oh... "dirty bomb"?

The fire is out of control and they've tried to put it out, for years, but can't.

ETA

Yes, GB, it's west of STL.

 

[shady inc]

if it makes you feel any better, i live in columbia, MO. our tornado sirens went off on a technical error at 6:00 this morning. pretty scary stuff

 

[Godsbrother]

potentially scary ####, bob.

do you believe that the fire is "controlled"? what are your options if not... this place looks upwind (West) of St L- true? any idea how they combat fires like this?

oh... "dirty bomb"?

The fire is out of control and they've tried to put it out, for years, but can't.

There are mine fires in central PA that have been burning since the early 60s and may continue for the next couple hundred years. A whole town (Centralia) has been abandoned.

 

[Baloney Sandwich]

No wonder the Rams want to move to LA

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Bob, you are just the super hero we need at a time like this. All those days when you were a kid swimming in the radioactive streams behind your house have made you invincible. Have them lower you down into a hole with a fire extinguisher and put that thing out.

I don't have many years left for sure because of that government fail and this would be funny if there weren't so many more lives at risk. Saw another one of my friends last weekend that is one of the few, sadly, that actually beat cancer. ####### crazy how many of us have gotten cancer in our 30's and 40's. Pure coincidence living next to, and playing in, a creek full of nuclear waste. #### the government.

 

[St. Louis Bob]

potentially scary ####, bob.

do you believe that the fire is "controlled"? what are your options if not... this place looks upwind (West) of St L- true? any idea how they combat fires like this?

oh... "dirty bomb"?

The fire is out of control and they've tried to put it out, for years, but can't.

There are mine fires in central PA that have been burning since the early 60s and may continue for the next couple hundred years. A whole town (Centralia) has been abandoned.

Oh I know.

 

[Ignoramus]

potentially scary ####, bob.

do you believe that the fire is "controlled"? what are your options if not... this place looks upwind (West) of St L- true? any idea how they combat fires like this?

oh... "dirty bomb"?

The fire is out of control and they've tried to put it out, for years, but can't.

There are mine fires in central PA that have been burning since the early 60s and may continue for the next couple hundred years. A whole town (Centralia) has been abandoned.

Man, I had never heard about that. That's nuts.

 

[cstu]

If it wasn't in a fly-over state before...

 

[Fullback Fro]

Do you guys mind if you could call me Landfill, you know in honor of my brother?

 

[St. Louis Bob]

I should have added in the OP that most people around here really didn't care either until the evac plans were made public. Just mind boggling. Reminds me of HJS and Bart's comet "meh, everything will work out".

 

[Dickies]

Sickening. Haven't even heard about this prior to coming here. Hope everything works out.

 

[Frostillicus]

Sounds made up.

 

[msommer]

Well, I guess you guys ought to recycle more.

Oh and stop with the landfills.

Maybe find better (safer) things to do with nuclear waste, too

Stupid is as stupid does

So I should get a time machine? Great idea. Of course there is that Back to the Future paradox where I have to avoid my parents and grandparents or else I won't be born.

Wait, were you offended?

Sorry, bobbyboo. Let me dry your eyes and give you a cookie.

or, maybe you should actually do something about it, other than post on a bulletin board.

#stlouislivesmatters

HTH

 

[Frostillicus]

Well, I guess you guys ought to recycle more.

Oh and stop with the landfills.

Maybe find better (safer) things to do with nuclear waste, too

Stupid is as stupid does

So I should get a time machine? Great idea. Of course there is that Back to the Future paradox where I have to avoid my parents and grandparents or else I won't be born.

Wait, were you offended?

Sorry, bobbyboo. Let me dry your eyes and give you a cookie.

or, maybe you should actually do something about it, other than post on a bulletin board.

#stlouislivesmatters

HTH

Seems weird.

 

[Wrigley]

Isn't St Louis built on top of a landfill?

 

[beer 30]

Isn't St Louis built on top of a landfill?

Sadly a lot of places are. Mostly parks...where kids play...and stuff.

 

[jon_mx]

The Cubbies certainly hit a lot of dirty bombs off of St. Louis.

 

[MikeIke]

Dirty bomb, really?

 

[cstu]

Isn't St Louis built on top of a landfill?

Them building a giant gate pointed west was a not-so-subtle sign to get the #### out.

 

[Aerial Assault]

potentially scary ####, bob.

do you believe that the fire is "controlled"? what are your options if not... this place looks upwind (West) of St L- true? any idea how they combat fires like this?

oh... "dirty bomb"?

The fire is out of control and they've tried to put it out, for years, but can't.

There are mine fires in central PA that have been burning since the early 60s and may continue for the next couple hundred years. A whole town (Centralia) has been abandoned.

Man, I had never heard about that. That's nuts.

Me neither and I dwelled in Philadelphia for a good while. Wow.

 

[Aerial Assault]

Well, I guess you guys ought to recycle more.

Oh and stop with the landfills.

Maybe find better (safer) things to do with nuclear waste, too

Stupid is as stupid does

So I should get a time machine? Great idea. Of course there is that Back to the Future paradox where I have to avoid my parents and grandparents or else I won't be born.

Wait, were you offended?

Sorry, bobbyboo. Let me dry your eyes and give you a cookie.

or, maybe you should actually do something about it, other than post on a bulletin board.

#stlouislivesmatters

HTH

:unlike:

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Isn't St Louis built on top of a landfill?

No? Unless you count a small part that was previously occupied by the Cahokia Indians I guess.

 

[Mr. Pickles]

Springfield Tire Fire. Now smelled in 46 states.

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Happy all of these pieces of #### are so concerned with DFS. Thanks for protecting us you dirtbags.

 

[CBusAlex]

Isn't St Louis built on top of a landfill?

Last I checked, it was built under a landfill.

HEYYYYYYYYYYYYYYOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH

 

[Bob Sacamano]

Isn't St Louis built on top of a landfill?

No? Unless you count a small part that was previously occupied by the Cahokia Indians I guess.

Hey!

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Isn't St Louis built on top of a landfill?

No? Unless you count a small part that was previously occupied by the Cahokia Indians I guess.

Hey!

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Escalating

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Just made the mistake of reading some of the FB posts on the Coldwater Creek page. JFC, it's depressing. Stupid ####### government.

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Thank you Australia.

The blue circle is where I grew up, green where I lived with my children until 4 years ago.

It's a running joke in the GMTAN that so many people I know, die. Well, for a lot of them, there's a good reason for it. We played in nuclear waste as children almost every day.

You can go back to arguing how awesome the Republicans and Democrats are now.

 

[TobiasFunke]

Sorry, you can go back to arguing how Republicans/Democrats are great and being outraged that a cop roughed up one individual that was acting like an #######.

I get that you're mad, and you should be. But wouldn't it be more productive to tell your fellow posters what can be done at the grassroots level, rather than antagonizing the politically-minded posters around here who would probably be the ones most likely to actually do something in response to this thread? Or barring that maybe at least highlight the politicians who are trying to help and those that are standing in their way so we can vote accordingly in the future?

For example, based on this article and the letter it describes it seems maybe people could email or write DOE and encourage them to put the site under the FUSRAP program instead of leaving the site management to the private company? Or we could sign the petitions/letters of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment to federal and state officials encouraging them to take action to do the same, or to put the state government in control under the governor's emergency authority? Or even make a donation to the group?

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Sorry, you can go back to arguing how Republicans/Democrats are great and being outraged that a cop roughed up one individual that was acting like an #######.

I get that you're mad, and you should be. But wouldn't it be more productive to tell your fellow posters what can be done at the grassroots level, rather than antagonizing the politically-minded posters around here who would probably be the ones most likely to actually do something in response to this thread? Or barring that maybe at least highlight the politicians who are trying to help and those that are standing in their way so we can vote accordingly in the future?

For example, based on this article and the letter it describes it seems maybe people could email or write DOE and encourage them to put the site under the FUSRAP program instead of leaving the site management to the private company? Or we could sign the petitions/letters of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment to federal and state officials encouraging them to take action to do the same, or to put the state government in control under the governor's emergency authority? Or even make a donation to the group?

My point is the both Republicans & Democrats have done nothing about this for decades. They both suck balls. Plus when you have seen multiple friends and family get cancer, die from cancer, that all live in this area, I'm more than a little upset.

Plenty is done locally to get something done. The EPA said this week that even if the nuclear waste catches on fire, there's nothing to worry about. OH, OKAY. Good news, they're near a decision.

#### them to hell.

 

[TobiasFunke]

Sorry, you can go back to arguing how Republicans/Democrats are great and being outraged that a cop roughed up one individual that was acting like an #######.

I get that you're mad, and you should be. But wouldn't it be more productive to tell your fellow posters what can be done at the grassroots level, rather than antagonizing the politically-minded posters around here who would probably be the ones most likely to actually do something in response to this thread? Or barring that maybe at least highlight the politicians who are trying to help and those that are standing in their way so we can vote accordingly in the future?

For example, based on this article and the letter it describes it seems maybe people could email or write DOE and encourage them to put the site under the FUSRAP program instead of leaving the site management to the private company? Or we could sign the petitions/letters of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment to federal and state officials encouraging them to take action to do the same, or to put the state government in control under the governor's emergency authority? Or even make a donation to the group?

My point is the both Republicans & Democrats have done nothing about this for decades. They both suck balls. Plus when you have seen multiple friends and family get cancer, die from cancer, that all live in this area, I'm more than a little upset.

Plenty is done locally to get something done. The EPA said this week that even if the nuclear waste catches on fire, there's nothing to worry about. OH, OKAY. Good news, they're near a decision.

#### them to hell.

Except that your comment wasn't directed at Republicans and Democrats, it was directed at the posters here who you sarcastically deride for "arguing how Republicans/Democrats are great and being outraged that a cop roughed up one individual that was acting like an #######." I read about the story and was sympathetic and so I went out and did more research and found ways that people here can help; why'd you leave that to me? Did you know about the work of the Missouri Coalition for the Environment? They seem like the best way for regular joes like us to work to improve the situation.

Also, while your anger at politicians seems fairly justified to me, shouldn't the bulk of it be directed at Republic Services, the owners and operators of the site? The EPA didn't contract to take on the waste based on their declared expertise in storage/disposal. The GOP and the Democrats didn't do that either. It was Republic.

 

[TobiasFunke]

Just to supplement this- I'm on your side SLB. This seems like a terrible situation and people should be held accountable. I just personally get frustrated when people see something wrong and have a knee-jerk reaction to point the finger at "government" without specifics and details. Our government is just a reflection of us. If we just get blustery and frustrated but don't take action or hold particular agencies or elected officials accountable for specific action or inaction, nothing will change. If we coordinate and let them know we're listening and that we want them to take a particular action (in this case maybe classifying the site as a FUSRAP site and putting it under the control of the Army Corps) and will hold them accountable at the polls if we don't get it, we'll do a lot better.

Maybe you're doing that stuff elsewhere and just wanted to vent here, and that's cool. But there's a lot of people who visit this forum who are paying attention and active with respect to stuff like this. Tell us what we can do to help, if anything.

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Documentary on West Lake Landfill and Coldwater Creek looks at North County's radioactive legacy

 

[captain_amazing]

Wow.  Seriously nuts.

Not comparable at all, but I was constantly in the Merrimack river around Manchester as a kid.  In the 70s/80s it was known as one of the top 10 most polluted rivers in the world because of the textile plants in Manchester.  It's much cleaner now, but still has issues with water treatment plant overflows and street runoffs.  I'm sure it was a mistake spending those summers in the river.

 

[St. Louis Bob]

Wow.  Seriously nuts.

Not comparable at all, but I was constantly in the Merrimack river around Manchester as a kid.  In the 70s/80s it was known as one of the top 10 most polluted rivers in the world because of the textile plants in Manchester.  It's much cleaner now, but still has issues with water treatment plant overflows and street runoffs.  I'm sure it was a mistake spending those summers in the river.

I banged a chick IN the Meramec in the 80's. 

 

[captain_amazing]

I banged a chick IN the Meramec in the 80's. 

I bet her ###### glows in the dark by now.

 

[St. Louis Bob]

I bet her ###### glows in the dark by now.